Tarleton State University Athletics

Devon Gray was born for this - literally.

Gray, who will be a junior next fall, is a 5-9, 180-pound junior wide receiver at Tarleton State. He is also the son of former NFL player Mel Gray, who played for Detroit, Houston, New Orleans and Philadelphia from 1984-98.

"I want to make it to the NFL and be like my dad," Gray says of his goals.

He's had to patiently wait for his chance as an injury forced him to use his redshirt season at Coffeyville Community College before playing his freshman year of eligibility at Dodge City CC. He transferred to Tarleton for his sophomore campaign only to watch teammates Devin Guinn and Jahmeel Hobson - both 1,000 yard receivers - make headlines last fall.

Guinn and Hobson are now gone, and that means Gray, along with teammates such as Arthur Buckingham and Sam Robinson, will be expected to step up and lead the receiving core in 2010.

It also means Gray, who Tarleton coaches say has had a great off-season so far, could be in the spotlight when his father finally gets the opportunity to see him play next fall.

Gray, who was raised in Phoenix, says his parents have been long divorced and his father has rarely seen him play.

That doesn't mean the elder Gray hasn't had an impact on his son's life, or his football prowess.

"My dad has had the biggest impact on me as a player and as a person," Devon says. "I still talk to him on the phone every day and he tells me how to succeed as a player and as a person off the field."

Mel Gray now lives in Houston, and according to Devon, has plans of driving north to watch his son play this fall.

"When that happens I'm going to put on a show," says Devon, flashing a wide smile.

Among receivers returning to the Texans from last season's Lone Star Conference championship team, Gray and Evan Robertson tied for second in receptions with 13. Gray averaged 12.9 yards per catch last fall.

"Devon was in the shadows playing the inside receiver position with Devin and Jahmeel on the outside," Tarleton offensive coordinator Scott Carey says. "He's moving to the outside now, and he should be a big weapon for us."

Gray may be small in stature, but coaches say his 41-inch vertical leap makes him a bigger target than his 5-9 frame suggests. Coaches also praise his ability to get open.

"He's the best route runner we have," Carey says. "He has such a great understanding of how to get open, I can see him turning into a real go-to guy for us in the passing game."

Knowledge of routes is something Gray has studied for as long as he can remember.

"When I was a little kid I would watch practice film and game film with my dad," he says. "He was always studying film so I would watch with him and learn from it."

Gray has another advantage - he is likely to draw favorable match-ups this fall because opponents will have to account for both Robinson, who is an imposing 6-3, 220 with 4.5 speed in the 40, and Buckingham, who fueled the Texans to two big wins with three key catches on a game-tying drive against Midwestern State and a diving fourth-down grab late in regulation in a playoff win at Texas A&M-Kingsville.

With those three leading the receiving core through spring drills, Gray is confident the Texans won't miss a beat without Guinn and Hobson around.

"I think we can be even better than last year," Gray says. "Buck always gets open, he's just a play maker, and Sam is big and physical. I think this is going to be a receiving core everyone is going to be talking about."

Carey agrees with the speedy pass catcher.

"If we go into the season with Sam, Devon and Buck (Buckingham) as our starting receivers, I'm happy with that," Carey said.

Gray is just happy to finally have the chance to excel at the college level.

"This is what I've been waiting for," he said. "I can't wait to start the season."